SynopsisWoundwort, Vervain
and Silverweed arrive at Darkhaven, just in time to meet up with Campion. At the
same time, Hannah learns magic so she can help her friends.

Guest
Voices* None *

Favourite Quote"Only two things can
turn a good rabbit's heart to stone. Love and Hate. Which darkened yours?" -
Spartina to Campion

Personal
ReviewThis is the episode where everything really starts to happen
(although I seem to have said that before!). We see the reuniting of old
characters, and the new army of Woundwort taking shape. Despite the fact
that it should have been one of the best episodes, I still found it a bit mixed
in quality.

First of all, there are
some brilliant scenes, revolving once again around the exploration of the deep
mysteries surrounding certain characters. Campion starts off the episode,
continuing in his position as chief of Darkhaven. Despite his attempts to force
himself to blend in, it's clear he doesn't have the same killer instinct as the
rest of them, repeatedly allowing Granite to live. Spartina does sum up an
interesting point about his character, stating that 'only 2 things can turn a
good rabbits heart to stone; Love and Hate. Which darkened yours?'. There must
be some significance in the fact that Campion deliberately avoids the
question.

Woundwort also has an
interesting role. As usual, there's some humour between him and Vervain, with
him saying he'd leave Vervain but not Silverweed. The most interesting point in
his opening scene is when Woundwort describes his last terrible moments at
Darkhaven, saying how loss and suffering hardened his heart and posing
the question 'Without it, what would I be today?'. Silverweed's unexpected
response of 'Happy?' has a profound effect on the General, with him angrily
changing the subject. Could it be striking a little too close to
home?

Much as the two
characters work well seperately, it's when they finally reunite that the
episode really takes off. The dialogue between Campion and
Woundwort expresses the whole essence of the series, with Woundwort
coldly threatening 'I'll send you to meet the Black Rabbit of Inlé'.
Campion's reply of 'I've already met him General' is nearly as dark as the
episode gets. I say nearly, as the next scene is the darkest. Campion tells
Woundwort how he wishes to stay with the General in Darkhaven, something which
Vervain doesn't trust in the slightest of course. Silverweed then looks in
Campion's heart to see the truth. The response from Silverweed still makes me
shiver, as he collapses to the ground in fear squeaking 'There's a
darkness on his heart'. Campion tells how he's been touched by the Black Rabbit
of Inlé. Has he though... or is he himself now the Black Rabbit? Woundwort does
say he has been touched too. Despite this, I think it's hightly likely
Woundwort only believes he has. Silverweed could still see into the General's
heart in the last episode, but not Campion's, indicating that there is a
clear difference between the two.

The other major plot
idea of the episode is admittedly the one I hate. Hannah, feeling unable to
help without Kehaar, decides to learn magic. I can't say I'm keen on this idea.
Although there have always been mysterious less-than-realistic
ideas with characters such as Fiver and Silverweed, it's always been on the
path of vaguely plausible. Once they hit this point, they clearly decided to
throw all that out of the window, and descend into ludicrous fantasy. It starts
off as a bad play on the old 'Hedge-wizard' idea from Series 2, and very soon we
end up with a time-travelling tortoise (if she's a tortoise... I can never
tell!) who knows the secrets of the universe, and who is capable of
bestowing magical powers on others. For a start, why would such a creature be a
'Hedge' wizard, considering how little she lives in Hedges. Even the animation
of the scene looks off. I still can't decide whether they've been using CGI to
create the fireflies, but it does look that way at points. It's a style which
doesn't blend too well with the rest of the animation. I think that was the only
major negative aspect I could find, and in my opinion it let down an
otherwise excellent episode.

Rating (Out of 6) - Average

People may have said the series wasn't realistic in the past,
however I can't help but agree this time the writers have
gone a bit too far!